Oil & Gas Recruiters for Engineers, Leaders & Specialists
Who Drive Performance

TLR Search's process moves quickly, with strong oil & gas candidate slates often ready within 3–5 weeks. Final timelines depend on client-side decision-making, interviews, and offer stages. While many searches extend beyond that timeline due to our client's internal factors, our role is to keep momentum, reduce delays, and ensure the right hire is secured.

Many energy industry retained searches stretch to 6–10 weeks before candidates are even presented. At TLR Search, our process is built for efficiency without cutting corners. We usually deliver a slate of high-quality candidates within 3–5 weeks. While final hiring timelines can extend based on client-side interviews and decisions, we work to reduce delays, keep candidates engaged, and ensure the role is filled with the right long-term fit.

Yes. We recruit across the full oil & gas value chain, specializing in pivotal and hard-to-fill roles in upstream, midstream, downstream, services, and technology.

In oil & gas, it’s not enough to say you “cover the value chain.” The real challenge is finding the people who keep those segments running when talent pools are thin and the stakes are high. At TLR Search, we go beyond surface-level searches — mapping the market, targeting niche engineers, project leaders, and commercial specialists who aren’t visible on job boards and who most recruiters never reach.

Most firms chase what’s visible. We don’t. Our market mapping and psychology-driven outreach typically receives a high response rate from candidates — about 3x the industry norm.

Traditional recruiters spend their time chasing résumés that are easy to find. At TLR Search, we go deeper. Our process combines market mapping with outreach grounded in psychology, so even selective engineers and leaders engage. That’s why we achieve a higher response rate — three times the industry norm — and why our hires stay longer than those placed through traditional recruiting.

We’ve helped PE-backed oil & gas firms build technical and leadership teams quickly, supporting both investors and portfolio companies during high-pressure growth phases.

TLR Search has partnered with private equity groups as well as their portfolio companies to deliver critical hires under pressure. In one case, we worked directly with a PE group to identify leadership for a new acquisition; in another, we helped a PE-backed operator scale fast post-acquisition, filling dozens of engineering and specialist roles. Our process balances speed with depth, so lean internal teams aren’t overwhelmed and growth stays on track.

We specialize in critical oil & gas roles just below the C-suite — engineering leaders, project managers, technical specialists, operations leaders, and commercial executives.

Big-brand executive search firms focus on the board room and C-suite hires. We focus where oil & gas companies feel the most pressure: roles that directly impact operations, safety, and revenue. That includes drilling, reservoir, production, and HSE engineers; project managers; geologists and geophysicists; and commercial leaders in business development and strategy. These are the hires most companies can’t afford to miss — and where our retained process delivers.

We are Houston-based oil & gas recruiters with nationwide reach, serving upstream, midstream, and downstream companies.

While Houston is home to one of the deepest oil & gas talent networks — and we’re well-connected here — our reach is national. We’ve placed engineering leaders, technical specialists, and commercial executives across the U.S., and we’ve even supported international companies growing their presence in Houston. What sets us apart isn’t location, but our psychology-driven outreach, sector expertise, and process that engages the right candidates wherever the role is based.

We ensure retention through cultural alignment, candidate check-ins, and a 100% retention guarantee.

Our process goes beyond offer acceptance. Every finalist is vetted not just for technical expertise but also for cultural and leadership fit. After placement, we check in with both client and candidate to confirm alignment and address early concerns. This commitment to follow-through results in retention rates stronger than industry averages — all reinforced by our 100% retention guarantee.

TLR Search is a woman-owned, Houston-based executive search firm specializing in hard-to-find engineers, leaders, and specialists across upstream, midstream, and downstream oil & gas.

Many companies search for an ‘oil and gas recruitment agency,’ but when the role is critical and the talent is hard to reach, staffing models fall short. At TLR Search, we built an executive search approach for high-stakes hires — the engineers, leaders, and specialists who keep projects moving and revenue on track. That’s why hiring managers call us when they can’t afford another delay or another mis-hire.

If you’d like to compare firms, we’ve also created a resource: Top Energy Recruiters in Houston — it also includes top oil & gas recruiters.